Friday, October 24, 2014

Some updates on some of the many things going on in our lives:
1) The Mister will be the judge at the Tree to Table Event to support TreeBank.org on Tuesday. I'll be contacting those of you who offered to pitch in. I'm very excited, having found both a sub for my lab and a babysitter. I had even figured out what to wear before I heard the recent weather forecast.
2) The Royals are in the World Series! Yes, we are excited. It is tied 1-1 as of writing.
3) My tenure document in all of its beautifully tabbed, color-coded glory, was turned in on Monday. I should hear in April about the outcome.
4) We are headed to Kansas for the funeral of one of Jeff's uncles who will be much missed. I've mentioned before that I am not sure about how to write about such things, other than to remind my father, father-in-law, brother and brother-in-law that you are somebody's cherished uncles and please take care of yourselves. It is also the anniversary of the death of my uncle who died far too young, and a colleague just died and . . . . Well, life is uncertain. Please enjoy it.5) I have three times as many plants in my study population as in the past. This is not making the field season finish quickly, although it is interesting.
6) 90 degrees F in late October it too hot.
7) Soccer in the evenings makes the boys in my life cranky. Or maybe just me. I'm okay that the season is ending on Tuesday.
8) Eastern Oklahoma was beautiful last week, even though most of the trees hadn't turned.
9) The boys are growing up.
10) I still can't rotate photos when I use this computer. Hmmm. Happy Fall.

Sunday, October 5, 2014

There's a lot going on in our lives right now, from the fun (Dianthus and Aster had a great time camping at BioBlitz), to the very sad (loss of part of the Mister's extended family), to the annoying (strep throat, bacterial pink eye and weird metallic taste in my mouth within two weeks, and now the Mister is sick). And then there are the exams I'm grading. And the Broncos winning. And the ROYALS SWEEPING THE ANGELS!
And that pesky tenure document that is not organizing itself.
Anyway, I am not writing about any of those at the moment. Rather I am seeking your assistance in securing a great birthday present for the Mister (The Royals shirt is great, and, fortunately, the Royals have won since I washed the shirt-- otherwise we might have had an issue on our hands).
See, for our special birthday meal this year I decided to take him to a food competition/benefit dinner because the theme interests me ("tree to table") the competition looks good, and the cause (trees; specifically orchards near schools and shelters and help re-planting tree after tornadoes) is something I support.Alex Guarnaschelli and Dave Cathey, both of whom I adore (one of whom is an Iron Chef, the other is the local "Food Dude") are the judges, and the third judges spot goes to the highest bidder. Wouldn't you like to see The Mister, instead of some rich socialite or snobby food industry insider, judge such an event? One a whim I bid for him for a birthday present. Then, when I wasn't immediately out-bid, I realized that I really think it would be a lot of fun, and that he would be a great judge. If you would like to contribute to Oklahoma orchards, please consider donating through me so that I can bid again should the need arise (only one person has bid against me, but bidding ends tomorrow and who knows what will happen).